Jesus and the Ethics of the Kingdom

Jesus and the Ethics of the Kingdom

Sun Myung Moon

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for l am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30

The mustard seed

He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches."
Matthew 13:31-32

If Judaism had united with Jesus, world Christianity would not have come into being. Instead, a Jesus-centered nation of Israel would have begun. It would have grown in stature, influencing the Cain-type nation of the Roman Empire. It would not have been a Christian country, but would have been Jesus' own country It would have formed the kingdom of Jesus, rather than forming the religion known as Christianity. If that had happened, the country would have inherited the kingship and would have inherited the world. It would have grown and expanded to the point where today it would be one nation encompassing the world. Other countries would have inherited perfectly the tradition of that kingdom of Jesus. It would have become like a big tree with many different branches. Jesus' country would have been the trunk and each nation of the world would have been another branch, connecting to one trunk and one root. The leaves of that tree would have been individual men and women.

That huge, gigantic tree would have been one nation of God. The flowers and blossoms that bloomed would have been of one root, one tree. Even if you took the smallest leaf, it would contain all the elements of the huge trunk. The root, trunk, each branch, and every little leaf would all contain the same elements. It would have been full of the spirit of the kingdom. The spirit of the root, spirit of the trunk, everything would have been contained within this tiny leaf, which means each individual.

From the speech of Sun Myung Moon: The 38th Anniversary of the Unification Church May 1st, 1992

If the Jews had become one with Jesus, they could have overcome the great Roman Empire within 40 years. Jesus could have become literally the King of kings and could have ruled the world with truth and love. With this great hope and great providence, Jesus came. But he could not disclose his innermost intention to his countrymen. Jesus had come with the purpose of uniting the spiritual and physical worlds, and establishing the kingdom of heaven both spiritually and physically.

From the speech of Sun Myung Moon: Untitled February 20, 1965

The kingdom of Heaven is within you

Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you." Luke 17:20-21 Where is God within us? God lies within the mind of the mind. How deep is that mind of the mind? Where is heaven? Wherever God is, there is the kingdom of heaven. If God is in the mind of mind, then we know what Jesus meant when he said that the kingdom of God is in the midst of you. More clearly, we can say that the kingdom lies within the mind of the mind, or the center of the mind.

From the speech of Sun Myung Moon: Let Us Set the Record October 12, 1980 

Are you able to see or touch your conscience? Are you able to touch and see God? We cannot touch or see him, so where is he? Up in the air some place? The earth itself is rotating, so heaven up here may become heaven down below tomorrow in terms of space. If we look at the planet earth from far way, people at the bottom are standing upside down. For Chinese people, heaven is America because they are standing in China. In reality, heaven describes the state of holiness, the highest and most glorious place. Where is heaven then? Where does God dwell? In the conscience.

God is the root of love, life, lineage, and conscience. Therefore, I come to the conclusion that God dwells in the innermost depth of your conscience. If you pray really seriously and reach a state of real spirituality you will be able to communicate with God directly. In this state when you say, "God, where are you?" Heavenly Father will respond from the center of your being, "I am here. Why do you call me?"

From the speech of Sun Myung Moon: Find Your True Self November 23, 1994

Your conscience was born front your vertical [heavenly] parents, your body from your horizontal [earthly] parents. Therefore, your conscience is the closest mind to heaven within yourself. When your vertical and horizontal self unite, then you create a perfect man.

From the speech of Sun Myung Moon: Victorious True Parents January 28, 1993

The prodigal son

Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father: 'Father give me my share of the estate.' So he divided his property between them. "Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.' So he got up and went to his father

But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his antis around him and kissed him. Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 'Your brother has come,' he replied, 'and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.' The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him...'My son,' the father said, 'you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' Luke 15:11-32

God wants to have his day of victory, and once he has it he will never release it. God has suffered so much that on that one day his joy will be endless; on that day God will become crazy! Then he can forget all his past suffering. Think of being loved by that crazy God in that precious moment. Lovers today try to show their love by hugging and kissing, but that cannot be compared to God's elation when he has his one day of victory. When his own children achieve that goal and bring comfort and liberation to God, he will be crazy in joy and the world will be crazy in joy. Jesus' parable of the prodigal son demonstrates this. There was a son who wanted to take his inheritance and leave home. He went far away and squandered everything he had and became so destitute that he had to feed pigs to survive. Finally with a repentant heart he decided to return home. His father had compassion and ran to embrace him. His elder brother, however, condemned him and complained at their father's generosity, but the father's joy at his son's return had no limit. If even a prodigal son was welcomed that much by his father, how much more will God welcome you, not as a prodigal son but as a loyal, faithful son who has given his life for the restoration of God's kingdom? When on the day of homecoming you walk to God's throne, how much more will God welcome you? My only desire is to see God feeling that joyful.

From the speech of Sun Myung Moon: God's Day January 1, 1978

Who could receive the love of God, who had been patient for 4,000 years to give his infinite love? There was no one but Jesus. Jesus knew this, and he could be grateful for the love of God even when he felt lonely.

Then where was there a person of character who understood that God had been sad for 4,000 years and that he had been patiently fighting Satan during that time? Again, it was Jesus alone. Thus, Jesus, who had to walk the path of heaven's principles on behalf of God's patience, carrying the hope of God, who wished that he could lead humans the right way, was sunk in grief.

Therefore, you should also feel God's loyal heart as Jesus did. Thus, you should realize that you should not remain in the position of the prodigal son, but come to represent the full value of God's principles as the ideals of creation. We should take after Jesus, who felt the love, patience, and loyalty of God. He understood that he was found through God's 4,000 years of toil and patience and that he was the hope of God. We should inherit his love, loyalty, and patience.

From the speech of Sun Myung Moon: Jesus' True Heart for God, August 4, 1957

[Among you] there should never be racial discrimination. White people find that it is hard to throw away their old habit of discriminating against blacks, even after the Blessing. But if you do not correct that quickly enough, you will surely go to hell in spirit world. You will perish. That sense of belittling another and feeling superior to them is like a cancerous growth within your spirit. We see in the Bible the story of the prodigal son. He comes back and repents and receives all the blessings of the father. So his position becomes even better than the elder brother. That elder brother was saying, "My younger brother was a bad person but I was good. Why did you give all the blessing to him?"

From the speech of Sun Myung Moon: The Responsibility of Authority of the Unification Family March 1, 1992